Catch Me
by Caitlin51
Summary: With both his parents dead and struggling under tons of debt, Oliver has no choice but to turn to a life of crime to support himself and Thea. However, when a female thief starts beating him to his biggest scores, well... Olicity slowburn, criminal AU. Rated T to be safe.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Hey everyone! So, I'm back with a new story (obviously) and I'm super excited about where it's going. It will be an AU, but I promise that a lot of backstory information will be revealed throughout the coming chapters.**

**Luckily for everyone, **_**Maverick41**_** has agreed to beta this story again for me, so I want to express my gratitude for all he does to edit these chapters.**

**Okay, enjoy and please leave a review!**

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><p>He was a shadowy figure, barely visible against the blackness of the sky as he stood at the edge of the roof, poised as if to jump.<p>

The distant sound of sirens echoed through the silent night.

One side of his mouth turned up, a slight acknowledgment that the police were coming for him, but knowing that they were already too late.

Swinging the bow from its perch off his back, he fired an arrow attached to a cable onto the roof next door to use as a zipline to facilitate his escape.

No one could ever catch him.

…

Felicity sighed as she rested her head on her hands, closing her eyes for just a second.

"What're you doing?" a high-pitched voice demanded. "It's not the end of your shift. You don't finish for," he paused and she finally raised her head to see her balding manager consult his watch, "fifteen more minutes. Back to work!"

"I was just," she tried to protest, but he glared at her until her excuses died on her lips. "...working," she finished lamely. She should know by now that arguing with 'Mr. Efficiency' was a mistake, but the man irritated her and she struggled not to lose her temper at him.

"If you weren't our best…" the short man shook his head and muttered darkly, walking away from her.

"You'd what? Fire me?" she asked, under her breath so the man wouldn't hear her. As much as she didn't enjoy her job, she didn't really want to add getting fired from the IT department in a small start-up company to her resume.

Reluctantly, she turned her attention back to the screen in front of her and contemplated other possible employment options even as she resumed her monotonous work.

Fifteen minutes felt like an eternity. It always did. But, finally, the manager nodded at her, indicating to her that she was allowed to gather up her stuff, ditch the ugly orange vest that served as her uniform, and leave.

"Oh, Felicity?" the man's voice echoed after her when she was only about two more steps away from freedom. "We're cutting your hours."

"Again?" she demanded, whirling around to glare at him. "I'm already only part time."

He smiled, but there was no warmth in the expression. "We're a small store; we don't need that much help."

Grinding her teeth, she reminded herself that losing her temper at him wouldn't solve anything. However, she knew what he was really saying - she did her work so efficiently that they didn't need her to come in nearly as often. And that frustrated her. She was down to so few hours now…

"Fine," she forced out, then spun around and pushed open the door with more force than was strictly necessary.

The swinging door nearly took out Ray, who was reaching for the handle as she made her hasty exit. "Hey, careful," he cautioned, dodging out of the way. "Rough day?"

"Don't want to talk about it," she fumed. "And sorry, by the way."

"Hey," he draped his arm over her shoulders, "dating you is worth getting attacked by any number of doors, any day."

She smiled despite her irritation. "Thanks."

"Now, what's going on that has you assaulting helpless doors?"

"My hours got cut. Again," she mumbled.

He was silent for a second, and she winced, knowing exactly what was coming next.

"Felicity," he started, "hear me out."

"If it's about quitting my job to work for you…"

"But I'm the CEO of Star Incorporated, and we're looking for someone to run our IT department, and I can't think of anyone more qualified than you for the position."

"Ray, look," she stopped walking and turned to look at him. "I don't want you to think that I'm being ungrateful, but no. I don't want to get the position because you're in charge and we're dating, okay? I can't be that girl."

"That wouldn't be what it's like," he promised, looking at her eagerly. "All I'll do is get you the interview; the rest is up to you."

She bit her lip, surprisingly tempted despite her objections earlier.

"Just think about it, okay?" he asked softly.

Sighing, she nodded. "Okay."

He smiled and leaned down to peck her on the lips. "Chinese or Italian?"

"Italian," she said decisively, grateful for the sudden change of subject. "Did you know that Thomas Jefferson was the first person to introduce macaroni to the United States?"  
>"So he's not only a Founding Father, he's also the father of modern day mac 'n' cheese," Ray mused. "Interesting."<p>

"A man of many talents," she laughed, leaning against him as they walked off to dinner, the issue of what she was going to do still running though her mind.

...

"Ollie, you're back late."

Oliver turned around to see Thea standing in the doorway of their small apartment, dressed in her pajamas, her eyes still bleary with sleep.

"What are you doing up?" he asked, shutting the door quietly behind him. "It's almost one in the morning."

"Couldn't sleep," she explained, yawning. "So I got up to get some hot chocolate, and I peeked in your room to see if you were still up and wanted something too."

"Sorry," he walked in and pecked her on the cheek. "I was at the office late, working on a big project with the rest of the marketing team."

"Does Star Incorporated ever give you a break?" she asked, shooting him a concerned look. "That's the third night this week that…"

"...don't worry about it," he interrupted her, eager to change the conversation quickly. He didn't want her to become aware of the way he actually spent most of his nights. "It's fine. We need the money."

"If you let me work full time," Thea started to comment, but he held up a warning finger.

"No. Education first - you have to get good grades so you can get into a respectable university." They had had this argument so many times before that Oliver could practically predict what she was going to say next - either a rebuttal about money or about the fact that he had a decent job without going to college.

"I can't afford university, Oliver," Thea folded her arms in front of her and glared at him. "And you only finished high school. I'll be fine."

"No," he placed his hands on her shoulders and looked her in the eyes. "You'll be more than fine. You'll be fantastic. You won't have to work your way up from lowly intern to a position where you can finally make some money."

"But-"

"No buts, Thea. You're going to university."

"You're not my father," she retorted, but he could tell that she wasn't actually angry at him. That was just her automatic reply these days.

"If Dad was alive, he'd want you to go to college too. So would Mom. You know that." Their father had died a number of years earlier in a car accident and their mother had followed only a couple years afterwards, supposedly of a heart attack, but Oliver suspected that grief at her husband's passing had played a large part in her demise. Their passings had left the barely 18-year old Oliver in charge of Thea at the time, a responsibility that he hadn't been ready for, but he had somehow gotten a position at Star Inc. and had made things work. He couldn't lose Thea too.

Thea sighed, but let the subject drop, for which Oliver was grateful. He knew that right now, in their current financial state, sending Thea to university was going to be next to impossible. His salary was not nearly good enough to make much of a difference.

"Now, Speedy," he smiled, "I think it's time you head to bed. You have school tomorrow."

"You should too," she told him, turning and heading back to her room. "And Ollie? I love you."

"Love you too, Speedy."

...

Oliver sat in his room, contemplating the small golden necklace he held between his fingers.

There was no other way.

His father's death had left him with tons of debt to a bunch of investors, debt that he hadn't had the heart to tell Thea about. She didn't need anything more to worry about, not while she was in her senior year of high school and had already been through so much. Their financial situation was even more unstable than she knew.

Up until a couple months ago, Oliver had somehow managed to keep up with all the payments and still keep food and an apartment for himself and Thea, but just barely. He was just lucky that he had somehow landed a decent job and that their parents life insurance had helped them out, at least for a while.

Then, the college applications had started. Thea had paid for the application fees herself, out of the small amount she made from her part-time waitressing job. However, Oliver had looked into tuition costs and had quickly figured out that he was going to have to supplement their income somehow. Financial aid was a possibility, but even that could only go so far when Thea's grades were only decent and Oliver's income was technically satisfactory.

The necklace felt heavy between his fingers.

It was expensive, some rich woman's fancy piece that she had loaned to the museum.

He sighed and slipped the necklace back into his pocket, banishing the guilt from his mind. He had no other choice.

…

"...thief called the Arrow stole a valuable piece from the local museum's prize exhibit. Police believe the heist took place sometime between-"

Felicity switched off the TV, too distracted by her thoughts to pay attention to the news.

She hated her current job. There was no doubt there. It was a waste of her skills to be there, and her manager certainly didn't give her any reason to stay. However, she had been hired strictly based on her own abilities.

The offer Ray had extended seemed more and more tempting as she considered it, but she didn't want to start a job with all her coworkers thinking that she was only hired because she was dating the CEO.  
>But, an interview couldn't hurt, could it?<p>

Before she changed her mind, Felicity pulled out her cell phone and dialed Ray's number.

"Ray, hi," she started without waiting for him to do more than greet her. "When can I come in for that interview?"

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><p><strong>Please review!<strong>


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Wow, you guys are amazing! Thanks for all the reviews, follows, and favourites...I am definitely going to continue this and I'm glad that you all are interested =). This chapter is again setting things up, but I think we'll start having some flashbacks soon to explain things a bit.**

_**Maverick41,**_** my beta, is fabulous. As always.**

**Enjoy!**

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><p>"There's no need to be nervous. You know that you're better than all the other applicants, so why are you freaking out?"<p>

Felicity paused her pacing and glared at Ray, who was sitting at his desk in Star Inc. looking relaxed and at ease.

"Of course I'm better!" she agreed. "But you know why I'm nervous." Resuming her pacing, she clutched her tablet in her arms and tried to breathe. It had been a long time since she had had a formal interview, and she had never been in a position where she was dating a very influential member of the company.

Ray stood up and walked around his desk, reaching out and catching her as she stormed by. He looked into her eyes. "Breathe, Felicity," he ordered. "I already talked to Todd, the guy who will be interviewing you for the position, and he's looking only at your qualifications. Nothing else."

Felicity's mouth widened in shock. She knew that his words were meant to be reassuring, but instead they just heightened her anxiety. "You _talked _to him?"

"Yes. No. Well, I mean, I did, but I only said good things. Or bad." He lowered his voice and then asked, " What exactly is the right answer?"

His teasing reply coaxed a smile out of her despite her efforts to stay irritated at him. "I don't think there is one."

"Hate those times," he replied, scrunching his nose. "Makes me feel a little useless."

"Just wish me luck," she smiled at him, then checked her watch, confirming that she did have enough time to run down to the coffee shop in the lobby and load up on caffeine before her interview.

"Good luck - you'll be great."

"I know." Fake confidence was sometimes all she had, but she was going to project it anyways. This was her dream job, and she was going to land it.

...

Oliver jabbed the elevator button impatiently with one finger, then crossed his arms and scowled at the unresponsive doors.

He was already late for his first meeting today because he had had to drive Thea to school after she overslept and missed her bus. Then, the elevator was taking a lifetime to meet him in the lobby and take him up to his office so that he could grab his notes and at least be late and prepared instead of just late.

Finally, with a 'ding,' the door slid open.

Heaving a sigh of relief, Oliver stepped inside and pressed the button for the tenth floor. The door just started to close when he saw a blonde, a couple steps away, waving frantically at him with her free hand. In her other hand was a plastic coffee mug.

He deliberated for a second - catching the door would make him about ten seconds later to his meeting - but his basic sense of decency won out and he reached out and pressed down on the 'door open' button until she was able to enter the elevator.

"Thanks," she panted, a little out of breath. He noticed that she seemed a little frazzled, but he didn't feel up to starting small talk, not with the day he was having.

"No problem," Oliver replied, forcing a smile and impatiently waiting for the doors to shut again. "What floor?"

"Fifteen," the woman responded, taking a sip of her coffee. "And thanks. Again. Didn't really want to be late for my interview."

"Well, good luck, Miss…?" he replied, finding that he actually did mean it.

"Thanks. Wow, I feel like you probably think that that's all I know how to say. But really, I mean it. I'm trying to be grateful, but it's really hard when 'thanks' is really the only useful word." Shifting her coffee to her other hand, she extended her now free right hand to shake. "And it's Smoak. Felicity Smoak."

He stared at her for a moment, fighting an amused smile at her words before taking her hand. "Oliver Queen, marketing department," he introduced himself, holding her hand for a second longer than strictly necessary. There was just something charming about her that intrigued him.

Unfortunately, he didn't have time to explore that thought as the elevator doors dinged open and the automated voice announced that they had reached the tenth floor.

He hurried out, waving in response to her 'have a nice day' that followed him as he practically sprinted down the hallway.

...

"I got the job!" Felicity enthused, barging into Ray's office without knocking.

Her interview had just barely finished a couple moments ago and had been an absolute success. The guy interviewing her, Todd, was far less competent than she was in everything computer related, so she had been able to perform all the tasks he had asked of her without breaking a sweat, and also show him some new tips and tricks in addition to what was required for the interview.

"Felicity. Hi." Ray looked up from his desk, looking surprised and a little annoyed. Then, he turned back to his open laptop in front of him. "Mr. Zhoo, could I call you back in fifteen minutes? There's a little situation here at the office that requires my attention."

A muffled reply issued from the speakers, quiet enough that Felicity couldn't make it out, but Ray nodded and thanked the man on the other end of the conference call.

"Sorry," Felicity mouthed, feeling her cheeks heat up.

Ray clicked a button, then stood up. "He's gone now," he moved around the desk to her.

"I'm sorry," she said, this time out loud. "I didn't think and I was excited…"

"Felicity, it's fine," he told her, pulling her into a hug. "And congratulations! I knew that you could do it."

She pulled back and grinned at him. "So, now that I'm head of the IT department, I'm going to have to start seeing some respect around here."

Ray laughed. "I think I can arrange that," he teased, leaning in and planting a quick peck on her lips. "Ma'am."

"Nice try," she squirmed out of his grasp, "but you'll have to try harder than that to impress me - I'm living my dream right now."

"I look forward to impressing you," he promised, "later. But now, I really should call Mr. Zhoo back…"

"Of course," she agreed immediately. "Are we still on for dinner?"

One look at Ray's face told her that she wasn't going to like the answer. "Felicity-"

"You have to work late," she finished. "Again."

"I am the CEO," he spread his arms apologetically. "I'll make it up to you?"

"Fine," she rolled her eyes, but smiled despite her irritation as she walked out of his office. The sound of his voice, already reinitiating the conference call that she had interrupted, followed her out.

...

Everyone had already left for the night - Oliver was alone in his office in Star Inc.

It was time to pick his next target.

The money from the museum's necklace had taken care of most of the recent debt payments, including some that he had somehow overlooked, but he was struggling to keep his head above water right now. He needed a good score, one that would secure his and Thea's financial position at least for the month.

However, what Oliver didn't want to admit, couldn't admit, was that there was a part of him that wanted to steal, that wanted to continue with his nightly activities. He liked the thrill that came with of deceiving everyone while escaping with the valuable object without being caught.

Star Inc. provided the perfect list of potential targets for him - the company's investors consisted solely of rich families who wouldn't miss a priceless painting or sculpture here and there. And besides, though they didn't know it, their money was going to a good cause - Thea.

Oliver had started hitting the investors about a year ago, along with the occasional other unrelated job in order not to create a pattern for the police to trace back to him. So far, he had kept his pastime pretty infrequent - just a job every two or three months, and always something minor and not terribly valuable.

Now, however, he didn't have that luxury. He couldn't get behind in his debt payments again, and he really had to start saving money for Thea's college education instead of just breaking even all the time.

He had to think bigger. Aim higher. Push himself more.

On the table in front of him was a memo that had been distributed to all the major company employees, advertising the gala that the Pulner's were throwing on the weekend to celebrate...well, Oliver actually wasn't quite sure what they were celebrating. The memo was pretty sparse on the details. Regardless, though, they were one of the more wealthy investor families and this party would be the perfect opportunity to grab something without worrying about security. As a bonus, he would even have the perfect alibi for not being 'the Arrow,' as the media called his criminal persona, since he would technically be in attendance at the party.

Now, all that was left was to formulate the perfect plan to distract everyone from his brief absence so he could get his target out in and out and then return to the party before the chaos was over.

It was a risky move; Oliver knew that. But he wasn't going to have another chance like this.

Besides, what would be the fun in stealing if there was no element of danger?

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><p><strong>Please review and let me know what you think so far!<strong>

**Also, is there anything particular you all would like to see in the future in this story? The plot isn't set in stone yet, so comment below with any requests!**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: You guys are all seriously wonderful. I'm so glad that everyone is enjoying the story! Also, italicized sections, from now on, will be flashback.**

**Thanks again to **_**Maverick41**_** for taking the time to beta this story - your help is invaluable.**

**Enjoy!**

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><p>"One second, Mr. Mortensen," Felicity said into the phone distractedly, her fingers already flying across the keyboard of her fancy new work computer, furiously trying to find a solution to one of their richest client's problems. He was important enough and his problem was challenging enough that Ray had asked her to take on the call directly and do whatever it took to make him leave satisfied with their services.<p>

"Okay," she continued, hitting the 'enter' button with a triumphant flourish that she belatedly realized he couldn't see over the phone. "Try it now."

She heard a couple clicks on the other end, then a surprised grunt. "It's fixed."

"I am the head of the IT department for a reason," she smiled, feeling proud of her exemplary performance. This new job was perfect for her and her abilities, and she found herself enjoying being at work for the first time in a long time.

"Is there anything else I can do for you today?"

The call wound up pretty quickly at that point, and Felicity hurried it along as soon as she saw a blinking red light on the phone base informing her that she had another incoming call.

"Star Inc. IT department, Felicity Smoak speaking," she answered automatically, pressing a button to transfer the waiting call to her line. "How can I help you today?"

"You can get the owner of this gorgeous voice up to the CEO's office for lunch," Ray's familiar voice teased. "You're late."

Felicity glanced at the time on her cell phone and grimaced. "Sorry, busy call."

"Mortensen?"

"Yep."

"Ahh. He's always a difficult client."

"Thanks for the late warning," she commented wryly, tucking her phone into her purse as she talked. "I'll be there in two minutes."

"Clock's ticking," he responded, then disconnected his line.

Felicity replaced the receiver and started to put her computer into sleep mode when a headline caught her eye - "Local billionaire lays off 100 workers without compensation."

Before Mortensen's call had been transferred to her, she had done a quick Google search, intending to learn a little about the type of man she was going to be dealing with, but she hadn't had time until now to look at the results.

She peeked quickly at the time in the corner of her screen, then shrugged and clicked on the headline. Ray could wait an extra minute.

A quick scan of the article told her that the man she had just finished helping was something of a tyrant. That morning, for no reason other than a bad mood and a greedy desire to cut costs to the bare minimum, (according to the reporter), Mortensen had fired over one hundred workers from the Glades on account of 'failure to correctly perform the tasks assigned,' but some legal loophole in their contracts had allowed him not to give them a warning nor to be obligated to pay a severance package to any of them.

Felicity ground her teeth, her former satisfaction vanishing. She couldn't stand men like that, men who would ruin other, poorer, people's lives on a whim. Especially men like Mortensen, who could definitely pay to retain those workers or at least ease their departure from the company.

Her cell phone rang, distracting her from her thought.

"Hello?" she pulled it out of her bag and answered distractedly, still skimming the details of the article and feeling her ire rise with each word.

"Felicity? Are you okay? Is everything alright?" Ray sounded worried.

"Of course," she hurriedly reassured him. "Why?"

"Well, I assumed if you weren't here by now, the only other alternative would have been that you were kidnapped, tied up, and shot."

Felicity rolled her eyes. "Very funny. I just got held up - I'm coming up now."

"Need a security detail?" he teased. "I hear the elevator is pretty dangerous."

Felicity ended the call without responding, shut her computer down, and headed to meet Ray, still fuming slightly that men like Mortensen were always the ones who got rich at the expense of everyone else.

...

"_Thea, we have to talk."_

_Thea turned towards him as he entered the house, her smile vanishing at the look in his eyes. "Is everything okay?"_

_Oliver sighed and ran his hand over his scalp, feeling tears well up in his eyes again. He didn't know how to tell Thea. "We should sit down." His voice sounded hollow even to his own ears, and he saw a worried look appear on Thea's face._

"_Ollie, you're scaring me," she sank down onto the couch and he followed, sitting close to her for comfort._

"_Thea...Thea, I don't know how to tell you this," Oliver's voice shook. "Dad's dead."_

"_What?" Thea demanded, horrified. "How?"_

"_Car accident." Oliver didn't know all the specifics, not yet. All he knew came from his mother's frantic, almost hysterical phone call - some drunk rich kid had lost control of his vehicle and his actions had killed Robert Queen. "Mom's...I don't know where she is. But she'll be home, soon."_

_Thea burst into tears and clung to him. He wrapped his arms around her, pulling her close and stroking her hair soothingly. "It's going to be okay, Speedy," he muttered, desperately trying to make himself believe his own words._

…

"Excuse me," Oliver tapped on the shoulder of a blonde woman. She had her back to him and was furiously working on her computer, so intent on her work that she had missed his first couple attempts to attract her attention.

She twirled around in her chair to face him, and he immediately recognized her - the woman from the elevator.

"Oh, hi," she sounded surprised to see him there. "You."

"Yeah, me," he responded with a smile. Gesturing at her desk, he added, "You got the job! Congratulations."

"Yep," she nodded. "I did get it. The job." She flushed slightly, then moved on. "So, Oliver, right?" At his nod, she continued, "What can I do for you today?"

"My phone," he pulled the offending object out of his suit pocket, "had an unfortunate encounter with some coffee on my break today and has since decided to be uncooperative."

"Ahh," she nodded wisely and took the device from him. "We get this all the time. Coffee - the ancient nemesis of all things electronic."

Oliver smiled. "Can you save it?" The incident with his phone, if irreversible, was just another expense to add to his constantly growing list.

"There's hope," she laughed. "Leave it with me for a couple hours and I'll see what I can do."

"Great," Oliver thanked her enthusiastically. "I'll see you soon."

"Yep," she smiled, turning back to her computer. "But watch that coffee in the future - you take your eyes off it for one moment…"

"I will," he promised, finding himself walking away with a smile on his face.

...

_Oliver rested his head in his hands, feeling tears spill out and trail down his arms._

_He was alone - Thea was still at the hospital. No matter how hard he tried, he hadn't been able to pull her away from their mother's body._

_Their mother's body._

_It still felt wrong to say, even though she had died earlier that morning._

_The doctor told him and Thea that it was a heart attack, that there was nothing anyone could have done to save her. However, Oliver knew the truth - his mother had never been the same after the death of their father a couple years earlier, and he suspected that it was her grief, more than anything else, that had killed her. She had lost the will to live._

_After he had arrived home, still in shock, he had met the debt collectors._

_They were repossessing the house. The furniture. Everything._

_Apparently, his parents finances weren't nearly as secure as they had led their children to believe - in fact, they were much worse. Oliver was in debt up to his ears, debt that he had no idea how he was going to pay off as a barely graduated high school student._

_Some of it came from his father's accident, apparently. The father of the rich kid had paid off lawyers and shuffled around enough money that their family hadn't been given a cent for the accident, despite their insurance. And that kid had gotten off without so much as a fine._

_The rest...gambling, bad investments, you name it. But it was bad._

_He couldn't tell Thea. She would worry and she had dealt with more than enough already._

_Somehow, Oliver had to find an out. A loophole. Something to keep himself and his sister alive and fed, with a roof over their heads._

_He would find a way - he didn't have any other choice._

...

"I'm thinking blue," Ray announced as Felicity walked into his office at the end of the day.

Felicity shot him a quizzical look.  
>"Blue," he clarified, pulling out a floor-length red dress from behind his back.<p>

She smiled and rolled her eyes affectionately. "You didn't have to buy me a dress. Again," she told him, but her eyes were caught by the way the gown sparkled subtly in the natural light coming in from the windows.

"Of course I did," he smiled, laying the dress on his desk and giving her a welcoming hug and peck on the lips. "I can't have my girl looking anything less than fabulous at the Pulner's gala this weekend."

"The gala," she repeated, remembering the flyer that had been passed around earlier. "Right."

"We're going - I want to show you off to the rest of the company executives and all of our best clients. Everyone will be there."

"Yeah, of course," she nodded. "Sounds like fun." Her false enthusiasm for the event apparently fooled Ray, because he smiled and grabbed the dress and his keys.

"Ready to go?"  
>She took his hand and they walked out together, Felicity trying to think of any reasonable excuse to avoid the gala. The thought of an entire evening mingling with Starling City's stuffiest citizens didn't appeal to her in the least, but there didn't seem to be any other options.<p>

…

Oliver stared at the price of the sculpture in disbelief, still unable to understand why someone would pay so much to purchase a carved piece of rock. The cubist-style marble sculpture wasn't really an impressive sight to his untrained eye, but the price it would bring made the job well worth it.

He was lucky that the Pulners were in possession of such an expensive piece and that they happened to be throwing a gala this weekend that he had an invitation to.

Everything was perfect - so perfect, that it made Oliver nervous. Something had to go wrong, but he had yet to find a flaw in his plan.

A successful heist would go a long way towards paying off his father's debts.

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><p><strong>Please review!<strong>


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: So, I know it's been awhile since I've updated - sorry! I got distracted by schoolwork... **

**Thanks again to Maverick41 for all his help editing this story - it's invaluable!**

**Enjoy =).**

* * *

><p>"Mr. and Mrs. Keyes," Felicity muttered under her breath to Ray as an elderly couple approached them. "Large donation."<p>

He squeezed her hand briefly in acknowledgment and gratitude. "What would I do without you?" Then, to the couple, he offered his right hand for them to shake. "Mr. and Mrs. Keyes," he greeted them warmly. "Thank you again for that generous donation you…"

Felicity stood there next to Ray, a cheery smile plastered on her face as she tuned out the conversation and looked around the lavishly decorated room.

Normally, parties like these would be something that she would enjoy. However, it seemed that only the most boring people in the entire city had showed up, and all the conversations were about investments and stock options - nothing that interested Felicity in the slightest.

And there was no dancing.

"...girlfriend, Felicity Smoak."

Felicity tuned back into the conversation at the sound of her name, realizing that Ray was probably introducing her to the couple.

"A pleasure to meet you," the elderly gentlemen said, his wife nodding in acknowledgement.

"A pleasure," Felicity echoed, not sure what the appropriate response was. All these social pleasantries irritated her.

After a couple more comments on how beautiful the party was and what an honour it was to be invited, the Keyes moved on and Felicity was left alone with Ray.

"Well, that was fun," she sighed, leaning against him.

"You hate the party."

"'Hate' is a really strong word," she protested weakly.

Ray chuckled. "I don't blame you. The one consolation is that I'm here with the most beautiful woman in the room."

She rolled her eyes, but couldn't help the slight smile on her face.

"Want a drink?" Ray changed the topic abruptly.

She pursed her lips, then nodded. "Yeah, that sounds good."

"Be right back," he promised, then started off into the crowd of people.

Someone bumped into Felicity from behind, sending her off balance.

A strong hand caught her arm and helped steady her.

Spinning around, she found herself looking at an extremely attractive and very familiar man. "Oliver."

"Sorry," he grimaced apologetically, his hand still touching her arm.

"Don't worry about it," she told him, trying not to notice the heat from his hand spreading through her body.

"Enjoying the party?"

"Define 'enjoying'," she wrinkled her nose, looking around the crowd of people to see where Ray was with that drink.

Oliver chuckled and pulled her towards him as a server with a large tray nearly hit her from behind. "Not a party person?"

"Nope," she breathed, very aware that she was only inches away from his chest and that he was very tall and felt very muscular and…

"Felicity," Ray's voice broke into her thoughts, coming from behind her.

She froze, her eyes widening. This didn't look good - Oliver's hand had moved to her back in order to rescue her from the waiter's tray and he hadn't removed it in the time she had been blatantly checking him out.

"Ray," she stepped out of Oliver's grasp and turned around, forcing an unconcerned smile onto her lips despite her flushed cheeks. Her boyfriend - boyfriend, she reminded herself sternly - was standing behind her, a drink in each hand, looking slightly upset and confused. "Have you met Oliver?" she asked, trying to defuse the tense silence. "He works in marketing."

"It's great to meet Felicity's…?" Oliver looked at her questioningly.

"Uhh...boyfriend," she supplied, berating herself for hesitating before answering his question.

"Ray Palmer, CEO," Ray finally broke into the conversation, handing Felicity her drink so that he could snake an arm around her waist and pull her close. "How do you and Felicity know each other?"

"Oh, from this and that," Oliver replied with a mischievous twinkle in his eyes.

"I repaired his phone," she explained to Ray. "Coffee accident."

"And we can't forget that encounter in the elevator," Oliver added, grinning openly.

"What encounter?" Ray demanded immediately.

"Is that quiche?" Oliver changed the conversation, his attention apparently distracted by a passing serving tray. "Please, excuse me - I have to try that." With another grin for Felicity, he escaped into the crowd, leaving her with a fuming Ray.

"What encounter?" he repeated, turning to her.

"It was nothing," she replied dismissively.

"It didn't sound like nothing."

"It was."  
>"Fine."<p>

"Fine." Felicity sighed, then handed Ray her untouched drink. "I'm going to get some fresh air."

…

_Things started off small._

_One month, they didn't have money left over from the debt payments to afford some basic necessities - toilet paper, toothpaste, dish soap, just little things like that._

_So, he 'acquired' them casually from the grocery store._

_It was easier than he expected - the security measures only took a couple minutes of study to beat and then he was home free._

_He was careful, though, because he didn't want to be caught and be forced to abandon Thea at such a young age to take care of everything. He wanted better for her._

_However, though he told himself that was only stealing out of necessity, there was a certain thrill that came with it - a thrill he tried to ignore, but always remained present. A rush of adrenaline as he escaped past the security guards, a flash of excitement as he pulled off another theft._

_It was addicting._

…

Oliver crouched in the bushes, his suit packed away in his backpack. The party had given him the perfect excuse to scout out the security, to see what he would be dealing with on his way to steal the sculpture.

Every sense was on alert and his pulse was starting to race. Finally, it was time to stop waiting and to spring into action.

Step one was getting onto the balcony. It was far enough removed from the party that it had been deserted all night, but not far enough away that the hosts had decided to keep the alarm on. It was the perfect entry point.

Oliver pulled the bow off his back and shot a cable arrow into the wall above the balcony, using it to send him flying upwards, his angle such that he would land perfectly on the railing.

The balcony doors opened.

Oliver cursed under his breath, feeling with one hand to make sure that his mask was firmly in place as he rolled onto the balcony and towards the silhouetted figure. Witnesses weren't an option, but neither was killing. Doing nothing was also out, because he couldn't have someone set off the alarm before he was safely on his way out.

"What the-?" A familiar voice started to ask as he rose from his crouched position and grabbed the person, putting one gloved hand over their mouth.

Then he realized who exactly he was holding. Felicity.

"I'm not going to hurt you," he whispered in her ear, forcing his voice to be lower and raspier than it usually was so that she couldn't recognize it. "As long as you don't scream. Understand?"

He felt her nod in his grasp, so he carefully lowered his hand from her mouth, still trying to decide what exactly he was going to do with her.

This whole situation was stupid, and all his fault. He didn't know why he had been drawn to her during the party - honestly, it was probably something about that form-fitting blue dress - much less why he had spoken to her. And the way he had acted with her boyfriend? Unacceptable. He had acted jealous, like he was trying to create a rift in their relationship.

Getting close to anyone was not an option. It was dangerous. And Felicity tested the limits of his patience in that regard.

He could feel her shaking in his arms, which made him feel even guiltier. On top of everything, he was now terrifying her too.

"What are you going to do with me?" she asked, in a shaking, quiet voice.

_That's a good question,_ Oliver thought to himself. Out loud, he replied, "You're coming with me." He didn't know what possessed him to give such a response, but it really did make sense. There weren't any other viable options. "And don't make a sound," he instructed, pulling her with him through the veranda doors and into the Pulner mansion in search of his target.

…

Felicity debated screaming. Or running. Or kicking her assailant where he would really feel it.

However, he had promised not to hurt her, and for some bizarre and idiotic reason, she trusted that promise.

"Why are you doing this?" she demanded, carefully keeping her voice a whisper so that she wouldn't provoke him too far.

He held her arm with one hand and walked slightly ahead of her, so that she couldn't possibly make out any of his features under his green hood other than the mask over his eyes that she had briefly glimpsed.

"And what exactly are you doing?"

"Stealing," he finally grunted in response.

She stopped walking suddenly and she could have sworn that he looked back at her in exasperation under his hood. "I'm not going to help you steal," she said, as firmly as she could despite her fear.

"Because it's wrong?" he asked, a mocking tone added to his raspy voice.

Nodding, she tried to meet where she assumed his eyes were under the shadow of his hood as he turned back to her again with his comment.

"I should've known that the rich CEO's girlfriend wouldn't understand."

"Understand? You're robbing them! At their own party!" Later, she would wonder how he knew who she was, but for now, she was just angry.

"They're rich," he explained, his voice rising. "And others aren't. Do you think that's right? Fair?"

That made her pause. "So," she eyed that bow on his back, "you're like some modern-day Robin Hood then? Robbing from the rich and giving to the poor?"

"I'm no hero," he dismissed her comment and tugged her forward.

This time, she didn't protest. What he said reminded her of Mortensen, that client who had allowed his workers to sink into poverty because of his greed. And that made her angry enough to stop arguing with this hooded thief.

The room they entered looked looked extremely fancy, even more so than the party downstairs. The walls were lined with large, probably very valuable, paintings, and multiple pedestals containing sculptures dotted the floor. It was like an art gallery in miniature.

"Stand there and don't move," the masked figure ordered, pointing further into the room.

She obeyed, walking away from him as he released his grip on her arm.

"Does this seem right?" he surprised her by asking, gesturing with one gloved hand around the room. "The Glades starve and the Pulners have a gala and an art show." His tone showed his disgust.

Felicity didn't answer. Her sense of right and wrong told her that this was wrong, but the little he had said was starting to make her question herself. And then she felt guilty for sort of agreeing with him, for not trying harder to stop his crime.. And besides, he seemed to have the right intentions and luckily didn't seem dangerous. Yet.

The man approached a pedestal holding a cubist sculpture and unslung the backpack he was carrying. From it, he pulled out a small laser which he used to cut the side off of the glass case. There was no alarm.

"Why isn't the alarm sounding?" Despite her moral confusion, Felicity was intrigued.

"Disconnected it from outside," he replied distractedly.

"Won't they notice that?"

He looked up at her and she saw the corners of his mouth twitch up slightly. "I'll be long gone by then." He reached in one gloved hand and removed the sculpture, setting it carefully into his backpack. In its place, he left a small object - a blunted arrowhead.

"You're the Arrow!" she gasped, remembering the many news reports about his heists. Always rich people, always only one object.

"You might want to run," he advised her, grabbing his bag and heading towards the large window.

"Run?"

"I like to make a dramatic exit." There was a large crash as he threw himself into the glass, shattering it, and fell into the night without another word.

An alarm started blaring.

Felicity ran to the window and peered out, her heart beating too quickly to be just fear. There was a part of her that hoped to catch one more glimpse of the mysterious thief, to make sure that he was okay.

There was also a part of her that wanted to somehow spend time with him again, but she tried valiantly to push that part aside.

"Don't move!" a voice screamed from behind her. Turning, she saw a security guard pointing a gun at her.

"What? No," she exclaimed. "It wasn't me...I-"

Ray appeared behind the guard and she nearly sighed with relief. He started speaking to the guard, leaving Felicity standing in the middle of the shards of broken glass.

She had a lot of thinking to do.

* * *

><p><strong>Please review!<strong>


	5. Chapter 5

**Okay, I'm sorry that updates have been pretty infrequent lately, but there have been some family emergencies and just general holiday business. Hopefully, things will calm down a little in the New Year!**

**Thanks again to Maverick41 for all the help editing and creating plot - I couldn't do it nearly as well without you =).**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

><p>Felicity looked at the stainless steel table in front of her, seriously contemplating banging her head against it in frustration. However, she realized that adding a headache to her list of problems probably wasn't in her best interests.<p>

"Start from the beginning," the officer sitting across the table instructed. "Tell me everything."

"I told the last two officers everything I remember," Felicity argued with a sigh. "Believe it or not, nothing's changed since then."

"Felicity," from his seat next to her, Ray reached over and took her hand in his, "just tell Detective Lance what he wants to know."

Felicity sighed again, but also squeezed Ray's hand in gratitude. It was only thanks to him that she had merely been taken in for questioning instead of just being arrested.

"I was on the balcony," she restarted her story, "when a man appeared out of nowhere, grabbed me, and took me with him. I was scared, so I stayed silent and didn't fight." It was mostly true - the only part she was deliberately leaving out was the conversations they had shared. It felt too...incriminating? Personal? Felicity didn't know why she couldn't tell the detective about the Arrow's words, but something stopped her from sharing those details. "And then he stole the sculpture and jumped out the window. That's it."

"That's it? Every detail you can remember?"

Felicity didn't even hesitate. "Yes, that's it."

"What about this?" Detective Lance held up an evidence bag that contained the blunted arrowhead that was the thief's signature.

She shrugged. "He's the Arrow, isn't he?"

Lance sighed and stood up. "Thanks for your cooperation, Miss Smoak. You may go."

"Thank you," Ray stood and shook the detective's hand. "Give us a call if we can further help with the investigation."

"Will do," Lance nodded, holding the door open for them to leave.

Felicity kept her eyes on the floor as they walked out of the police station, feeling a sense of guilt. She should have told the officer about her conversations with the mysterious figure, but she just didn't want to mention that he had a point. Also, she knew that protecting him was wrong, that he was on the wrong side of the law, and that she should fully cooperate with the police. However, no amount of reasoning with herself could change her mind.

…

Oliver hit the punching bag with all his strength, hearing the satisfying thump as his fist impacted the heavy bag.

It didn't help.  
>Thoughts of Felicity kept plaguing him, no matter what he did to avoid them.<p>

He attacked the bag in a vicious flurry of motion, sending his heart rate shooting up.

Holding her in his arms at the party, even for that brief moment, had just felt so….

His breathing sped up.

And the way that she had kept her cool, even when she was clearly terrified, was nothing short of incredible.

"Ollie?" Thea's voice interrupted his focus, and he realized that he had been attacking the punching bag with close to a reckless abandon. "Everything okay?"

Oliver paused in his workout to turn to face his sister. "I'm fine," he said, his voice slightly more sharp than he had intended. At her disbelieving look, he forced a smile and softened his tone. "Really, Thea, I'm fine. It's just been a rough couple days."

"You were out late again last night," she commented, walking towards him with a knowing look in her eyes.

"There was a work party," he explained. "I told you about it."

"A work party wouldn't produce this kind of reaction," she placed a hand on his arm and peered up into his eyes. "I know what's really going on."

Oliver forced himself not to flinch. There was no way that Thea could possibly know about his secret identity - he had been incredibly careful to make sure that there was no link between him and the Arrow. "And what's going on?"

Thea smiled. "There's a girl," she announced with a gleam in her eyes. "Finally."

Oliver laughed. He couldn't help it. The thought of Thea discovering his secret had been ludicrous, but it still had made him nervous. Now, the anxiety was gone, replaced by incredulity. "A girl?"

"Don't laugh," she scolded him. "I know you, Ollie. I see the look in your eyes."

"Don't be silly Thea," he replied. "Between you and work, I don't have time for a girl." Mentally, he added, _And besides, even if Felicity were single, she probably wouldn't be in the market for a criminal boyfriend anyway._

Stepping closer, Thea slipped her arms around his waist and hugged him. "I love you, Ollie, but it's okay if you have a life outside of me. Really."

Oliver smiled and hugged her back. "Thanks, Speedy." It didn't change anything; it couldn't, but he appreciated his sister's attempts regardless.

...

_It didn't take long for Oliver to realize that he needed to start developing some skills if he was going to avoid the police. He had had a few close calls already, and they were making him nervous._

_Getting arrested...well, he didn't know what exactly that would mean for Thea. Bad things, that's for sure. _

_She needed him._

_So, he started training._

_He already had some basic knowledge of self-defense and archery from his high school electives. Before all his father's bad decisions that had left them steeped in debt, the Queen family had been quite wealthy, and Oliver and Thea had attended a posh secondary school._

_Oliver had never been more grateful for that fact than at this time in his life, where all his electives were finally useful. While other kids took Home Ec. or P.E., he had become adept at self-defense, archery, fencing, and parkour._

_Now, he just needed to hone his skills so that he would be able to evade the police and still provide for Thea._

_She was worth it._

…

Oliver hesitated, fully aware that he was being an idiot, but unable to force himself to turn around. However, he also couldn't bring himself to knock. So, he just stood there, motionless, caught in his inner turmoil.

"Can I help you?"

Oliver spun around, surprised to hear the familiar voice coming from behind him. "H..hi," he stuttered, caught off guard by the sight of Felicity standing, her hands on her hips, directly in front of him.

"You're blocking the door to my office," she told him, glaring pointedly at him.

Awkwardly folding his arms over his chest, Oliver tried to figure out a way to defuse her obvious anger at him, but came up with nothing. It didn't help that he had no idea what he had done to provoke this kind of cold response from her. "But you have an office now," he commented lamely. "That's better than the cubicle you had last time I was here."

"Yeah, they finished the renovations." She swept past him and reached for the door handle, but he reached out and caught her wrist gently, stopping the motion.

"Are you okay?" he asked quietly, imbuing his voice with concern. "After the party last night?"

She shot him an annoyed look. "You mean after you created a terribly awkward situation between me and my boyfriend that is going to provoke a long and unpleasant conversation when we finally have time to address it? Yeah, I'm great."

Oliver sighed, releasing her wrist and allowing her to open the door and step inside. Before she could shut the door, though, he followed her inside. "That wasn't what I meant." Really, he wanted to make sure that she was okay after her adventure with him as the Arrow and that she wasn't being blamed for his crime. He didn't know if he could stand that. "But I am sorry about that." That wasn't quite true, but Oliver was willing to say whatever it took to make her feel comfortable, even though he knew he should be staying away from her. _However_, he rationalized, _I need to find out whether or not she talked to the police._

"Then what did you mean?"

"I heard about what happened. With that criminal and everything." Slowly, he reached out and touched her arm comfortingly, making sure that the gesture was permitted. "Are you okay?"

She bit her lip and dropped her gaze. "I spent the night at the police department, but yeah, I'm fine."

Studying her posture - the downcast eyes, the slumped shoulders - Oliver knew that she was hiding something from him, and that made him nervous. Had she told the police something incriminating about him? . He didn't know what she could have revealed, but he knew that now was not the time to prod. "Just let me know if I can do anything," he found himself saying, despite his determination not to form more of a relationship with her than he already had. "You don't have to deal with it alone."

She didn't say anything, but she did meet his gaze and he saw the heartfelt gratitude there. He flashed her one last smile and then left her office, shutting the door carefully behind him.

…

Felicity let out a shaky breath the second the door closed behind Oliver.

The man had this awful, ridiculous, perplexing effect on her. Somehow, without even trying, he made her heart beat faster and her breaths come unevenly.

And his touch, though casual on her arm, had just reminded her of how it had felt to be held in his arms for that brief instant at the party.

Dropping her head to her desk, Felicity groaned. All those thoughts were thoughts she was desperately trying to avoid, for the sake of her relationship with Ray. Things with Ray were good. She was happy. Wasn't she?

Huffing a sigh, she brushed back a couple strands of hair back from her face that had escaped from her ponytail and sat up. Her computer sat next to her, already on and logged in from before her coffee break.

The Mortenson account was open.

Temptation hit all at once.

The Arrow's words returned to her, hitting her with what felt like physical force: _Does this seem right?_ _The Glades starve and the Pulners have a gala and an art show._

Before Felicity could talk herself out of it, she found herself typing furiously.

And it was a rush.

* * *

><p><strong>Please review!<strong>


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Hey guys, I really am so sorry that updates have been and probably will continue to be pretty infrequent. I promise it's not because I don't love writing this story...this semester at school's just really busy and it's really hard to find chances to sit down and write. However, it will continue!**

**Thanks again to Maverick41 for helping with editing and plot,**

**Enjoy this chapter!**

* * *

><p>"We need to talk."<p>

Felicity started at the sudden voice from behind her, her sudden reaction jerking the coffee cup in her hand and sending the lukewarm liquid spraying across her blouse and the papers on her desk. "Oh, no," she moaned, barely even noticing the damage to her wardrobe and her notes in her haste to make sure that her fancy new work computer wasn't harmed.

"Sorry," she heard a contrite voice - Ray's voice - say from behind her.

"It's okay," she sighed, relieved to see that the coffee had missed the computer entirely. "The computer's okay."

Ray chuckled as she spun around in her office chair to face him. "Figures you'd care more about the computer than yourself," he gestured to her blouse apologetically. "I'll buy you a new one?"

Smiling, Felicity stood up and walked over to her filing cabinet standing against the far wall. "I come prepared for anything," she told him, bending over to open the bottom drawer and revealing the change of clothes she kept stored there for emergency purposes. So far, she hadn't had a reason to use them, but now her preparations were coming in handy.

Ray crossed his arms over his chest, his momentary burst of good humor fading from his face. "Felicity," he started, his tone much more serious again. "We-"

"-need to talk," she finished, selecting a peach button-up shirt from the drawer and standing up. Her mouth was dry with fear (what if he had found out what she had done?) but she projected confidence despite her desire to sink into the floor. "Why?"

Rubbing his jaw, Ray refused to meet her gaze. "A couple things, really," he finally muttered.

"You're going to have to be more specific than that," she teased, trying to lighten the mood. However, she really just wanted him to get to the point. There was no way he could have found out. It was 8am - it hadn't even been 24 hours since her little…

"It's about us." Ray looked up and she was surprised by the glimpse of insecurity she saw there. "And that guy, Oliver."

Unable to stop herself, Felicity let out a relieved laugh. "That's what this is about?" she exclaimed, feeling a weight lift from her shoulders. "Oliver?"

"Tell me there's no reason to be worried," Ray asked quietly, his eyes earnestly fixed on her face.

Felicity hesitated. Just for a fraction of a second, but it was enough.

"I see." Ray's shoulders slumped and he turned to go.

"No," Felicity took an involuntary step forward, her hand outstretched towards him. "Ray, wait. There's nothing, I promise."

"Then why did you hesitate?"

"I was just surprised," she defended herself, trying desperately to make herself believe her own words.

Ray opened his mouth to respond, but before he could, a red-faced secretary ran up and interrupted their conversation. "Mr. Palmer," the portly man gasped, "you have to come, now!"

"Jake? What's going on?" Ray demanded.

"We couldn't find you anywhere and he's getting really impatient and threatening to sue and…"

"Calm down," Ray held out his hands in a calming gesture, and Felicity was impressed all over again at her boyfriend's uncanny ability to take charge and make everybody around him feel calmer. "Start from the beginning."

Jake darted a quick glance at Felicity, obviously wondering how much he could say in front of her.

"She's fine," Ray answered Jake's unspoken question. "Speak."

"It's Mr. Mortenson, sir," the man wrung his hands nervously. "He's here, claiming that someone cleaned out his entire account."

Felicity's eyes widened and her heart rate skyrocketed. _How had he found out so quickly?_

Next to her, she could practically see Ray start to calculate possibilities. "Take me to him," he ordered curtly, his gaze still far away. "Felicity," he turned to her, "dinner tonight at my place? We'll talk then?"

She nodded mutely, feeling the guilt well up inside as she thought about the situation she had put Ray in.

Without another word, Ray breezed past her, hot on Jake's heels.

Felicity say down in her chair with a thump, all thoughts of changing her shirt forgotten. A quick glance at her account balance on her tablet confirmed that all the money was still there and that there were no holds on her account - the theft hadn't been traced back to her. Yet.

...

_You want to learn how to make arrowheads?" The elderly professor looked at Oliver in disbelief. "Whatever for?"_

"_A project for my history class," Oliver lied with an easy smile for the head of the Anthropology department. "With your background, I assumed you would know how exactly I could go about it."_

"_Well, yes, of course I know how," the woman told him with a sniff. "I have done extensive research about many ancient civilizations that used arrowheads as their primary weapon."_

"_Then I've come to the right place."_

_He didn't know why he had decided on using an arrowhead to mark his big scores, but it somehow seemed fitting when he considered his proficiency with the bow. And besides, he needed something to establish his identity. _

_Deep down, a part of him realized that his choice was influenced by his childhood - his father had always read him "Robin Hood" when he was a little boy. It had been his favourite story. Even now, when what his father had done was making life extremely difficult, he wanted something to tie him to the man._

_Also, as of late, his jobs had been getting bigger and bigger and Oliver was starting to crave some form of recognition for his hard work. He knew it was dangerous, that he was getting cocky, but he didn't care._

_Thea and the thrill were all that mattered to him._

…

"Felicity Smoak," Oliver raised the green hood up over his head as he stepped out of the shadows in the nearly deserted parking lot, intercepting her passage to her car. "We need to talk."

She didn't look scared. Actually, to his surprise, she just looked a little annoyed. "You're the second person to tell me that today," she breathed quietly. "Conversations starting like that are never fun."

Deliberately pushing back his curiosity about her cryptic statement, Oliver refocused on the reason he had sought her out. "I need to know what you told the police about me." He took a step forward, drawing himself up to his full height in an attempt to seem even more intimidating.

He saw her take a quick breath in and heard the sound of keys dropping from her hand and hitting the cement floor - she was obviously more afraid than she was letting him see. A part of him felt guilty about that, but the practical side of him seized the opportunity. "What did you tell them?" he demanded again, leaning towards her.

"Ev...everything," she gasped, taking a step backwards right into the stone wall of the parking garage.

"Be specific." He took another step forward so that there were only a couple inches between them. "Did you give them anything that could help them find me?"

"Get any closer and I scream," she threatened, ignoring his questions.

Oliver chuckled slightly despite the situation. "You don't want to do that."

"How did you know about my relationship with Ray?" she suddenly blurted out, then clapped a hand over her mouth, her eyes widening in horror.

Every muscle in Oliver's body tensed. So, he had slipped up. All his careful preparations, and he, as the Arrow, had revealed something that Oliver Queen had been told. "I researched the company," he finally answered after a pause. "That's the first step to a successful heist."

She didn't look convinced, but he didn't give her a chance to think about it further.

"Answer my question," he threatened, making his voice more intense. "Did you tell them anything incriminating?"

She shook her head silently. Looking into her eyes, Oliver couldn't see any sign of her hiding anything, so he breathed a mental sigh of relief. Coming here and terrifying her like this was bad enough; he was glad that he wouldn't have to make a trip down to the police office as well. The one mistake he had made - knowing that Felicity and Ray were together - couldn't be traced directly to him. He just had to be more careful from now on. And he had to stay away from her - she was too much of a threat to his self-control.

Bending down without taking his eyes off of her, he picked up her keys. "Go home. Forget me." He tossed them to her and turned to go.

"Wait."

Oliver tensed. She should want him to leave - why was she asking him to stay?

"I thought about what you...what you said to me," she continued from behind him. "About the Glades. I want to help."

Despite his best efforts to stay impassive, Oliver found himself grinning under his hood. Felicity was just…He shook his head, stopping himself from thinking about her any further. "You can't," he said instead, then fired a grappling hook up into the rafters, pulling himself away from her before she could convince him to stay.

…

That night, Felicity sat in front of her computer, huddled in a blanket with her knees to her chest.

Her bank balance sat in front of her, taunting her with the knowledge of the crime she'd committed. She had to do something with all the money she had taken from the Mortenson's - she just didn't know what. It was a lot, and eventually it would be traced to her.

Ray had called earlier and cancelled their dinner plans due to the Mortenson situation. On one hand, Felicity was relieved that they would get to postpone their talk that he had promised and that she would have a bit more time to figure out what she was going to do. Also, she didn't want to worry him by telling him about the Arrow incident today. However, she didn't like the way things felt strained between them lately, and she knew that it was because of the secrets that she was keeping from him.

"_You can't."_ The Arrow's parting words stayed with her, haunting her. They were like a challenge to her even though that wasn't what they were meant as. And Felicity Smoak never backed down from a challenge.

She pulled up a list of charities that were dedicated to helping the Glades. It was pitifully short - only six organizations - but she figured that an anonymous donation to each would take care of the money and prove the Arrow wrong.

She couldn't figure out why it was so important to her to impress him, but somehow it was. Somehow, she felt a connection with him, a desire to help those who can't help themselves.

As her fingers flew across the keys, she felt a thrill. It was the same thrill, mingled with fear, that she felt every time she thought of the Arrow and that she had felt when first stealing the money.

She was going to make a difference, no matter what.

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><p><strong>Please review! Also, do you guys want some Felicity flashbacks in future chapters? If so, what do you want to know about her past?<strong>


	7. Chapter 7

**Yay - I found time to write again! I honestly miss being able to update more often, but there's not much I can do about it...anyway, here's the next chapter.**

**Again, I have to thank Maverick41 for the edits and suggestions, especially in this chapter...I kinda borrowed a lot of his ideas for one scene here!**

**Enjoy =).**

* * *

><p>Felicity chewed slowly, keeping her eyes fixed on the plate in front of her. She wasn't really hungry, but every second she spent chewing was one more second that she could use to procrastinate the unpleasant conversation that was due to start any second.<p>

"Enjoying the chicken?"

She looked up and met Ray's eyes for a brief second before swallowing. "It's great," she answered without enthusiasm. To be honest, she had been so distracted by her thoughts that she hadn't even noticed that she was eating chicken.

"Felicity," he sighed, "can we just talk about it?"

She bit her lip and pushed the food around her plate with her fork absent-mindedly. "I don't know what to say."

"I just want things to go back to normal with us." Reaching across the table, he gripped her left hand in his and looked earnestly into her eyes. "This whole...silence thing - I don't like it."

"Me neither." This time, she was able to agree honestly. She didn't like how strained things were between them. Everything had been so easy at the start of their relationship. Now, within the short time since she had taken the position at his company, she had changed so much that she didn't even recognize herself. What did that mean for their relationship?

"Just, please, tell me the truth," his eyes begged her, adding their unspoken plea to his words. "Tell me if there's something going on between you and that marketing guy."

"There's nothing." Her voice was flat. She didn't want him to question her any more about Oliver. Not like there was much to tell - he hadn't even done anything to show interest in her! Their whole...whatever it was...was entirely in her head.

"Okay." Ray nodded slowly. She still saw uncertainty in his gaze, but he seemed to accept her refusal. "Okay. Felicity, I trust you. If you say it's nothing, that it's just jealousy, I believe you." He squeezed her hand, then let go so that he could continue eating.

"Thank you," she muttered, feeling a little guilty. There was no way that she deserved his trust, not after the mess she had created for him with the Mortenson theft.

"Okay, I think we need a change of topic," Ray told her, his voice brightening as he leaned forward. "Our anniversary. Next month."

Felicity froze, a bite of salad halfway to her mouth. "Anniversary?"

"Our one year," he told her, a huge smile spreading across his face. "Don't tell me you forgot."

"Of course not," she reassured him, plastering a matching smile on her face. "How could I?" In actuality, it had slipped her mind entirely with everything that had happened recently. "Wow, one year already?"

"Yeah," he sipped his water, then continued. "And, I'm sure that your boss will give you time off to celebrate, if you ask him nicely." He winked at her suggestively.

She laughed, allowing herself to be momentarily distracted by Ray's teasing. "I don't know," she said, pretending to be serious. "I've heard that he's pretty strict."

"It might require some convincing," he agreed. "But I've heard that he has a thing for pretty blondes."

She leaned forward and batted her eyelashes like the vapid heroines in movies always did. "Do you think something like this would work?"

Ray chuckled. "That would _definitely_ do the trick." He leaned forward as well and captured her lips in a soft, lingering kiss. "And that doesn't hurt either," he sighed as she pulled away with a grin.

"I'll be sure to give it a try." She picked up her fork, starting to feel conflicted again. When Ray kissed her like that or teased her playfully, things just felt right. But so many other times…

"Any news on the Mortenson case?" she asked, changing the subject to take her mind off of her current train of thought.

Ray sighed, tensing up, and Felicity immediately regretted her decision to ask. On one hand, she wanted to make sure that nothing could be linked back to her, but on the other hand, she didn't want to ruin the good dynamic they had just barely regained. "We don't have to talk about it," she added hastily, despite her burning curiosity."

"No, it's okay." Ray forced a smile. "Nothing concrete so far. Mortenson, however, is threatening to sue if we don't get his money back to him soon."

"Insurance will take care of that, right?"

"It shouldn't be a problem, except for our reputation. While we wait for all the paperwork to go through, I'll give him some compensation for the situation." Ray sighed heavily, his brow furrowed, making Felicity feel even worse.

"And that'll take care of everything?" she asked hopefully.

"All except for the criminal - Mortenson is determined to put him away for good," Ray added, then shrugged. "I can't really blame him, though."

"Him? You know it's a man?" she asked, then immediately snapped her mouth shut.

Ray shot her a strange look.

"I mean, it could have been a woman," she clarified, feeling her face heat up. Hopefully, Ray wouldn't notice her discomfort. Or that he would assume it was because...well, she had no idea what he would assume, but hopefully not that she was feeling guilty. "After all, he or she only needed computer skills."

"Okaayy," Ray dragged the word out, looking extremely confused.

"I mean, why do you just _assume _that it was a man?" she stabbed a cherry tomato on her plate with more force than necessary. Seeing the juice fly was slightly satisfying for some reason. "For all you know, I could have done it. I have the skills."

Ray stared at her for a second, then broke into a chuckle. "Thanks, honey. I needed that." He leaned back in his chair, a smile on his face. "The thought of you...stealing! That's the funniest thing I've heard in a while." He laughed again.

"You don't think I could do it?" Felicity knew that she should drop the issue, but between the Arrow telling her that she couldn't help and that she was essentially useless, to her boyfriend not even believing that she could have committed the crime she had practically confessed to, reason was escaping her.

"Nope," Ray answered candidly. "You're not a criminal - you wouldn't have it in you. And I love you for that." He stood up, gesturing to her plate. "You done?"

"Yeah." She said the word with much more hostility than she had intended, but Ray didn't seem to notice. Under her breath, she added, "I bet that the Arrow never had to deal with any of this."

A plate clattered onto the table, startling her as it fell from Ray's limp hand. "The Arrow," he breathed, his eyes lighting up. "Of course! Felicity, you're a genius."

"Wait, what?" she demanded. _Now he thinks I'm a genius?_

"I have to call the police, right away." Ray reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone. "They'll want any suggestions I can offer."

"Wait."

Ray paused and looked at her expectantly, fingers still poised to dial.

"I don't think that the Arrow would…" she trailed off as a thought occurred to her. "...be able to hide a crime like this from someone like me. I can help." Originally, her immediate response was to protect the vigilante, but being involved in the investigation would be even better - she could keep the police off both his and her tracks. And maybe, just maybe, she would see the hooded man again. Even the thought of that made her heart beat faster.

"Good idea." Dialing, Ray walked out of the room. She heard his conversation start, then fade as he started to climb the stairs leading to his office.

Sitting there, alone, Felicity felt the full weight of her guilt fall on her. Yes, she had donated the money to those charities, but she had also made Ray's life harder. And technically, what she had done was extremely illegal, no matter her intentions.

She needed someone to talk to. Someone who wouldn't judge her.

She needed to find the Arrow.

…

"_Ollie? What are you doing?"_

_At the sound of Thea's voice, Oliver hastily swept his crude attempts at making arrowheads into a box he had waiting next to his desk, just in case this exact scenario occurred. "Just a second," he called, throwing a blanket over the top of the incriminating evidence and shoving it under his bed with his foot. Then, he scanned the room quickly to make sure that there were no visible signs of his project before he went to the door and opened it for Thea. "Speedy," he greeted her with a smile._

"_I saw the light on," she crossed her arms and glared at him. "Shouldn't you be sleeping? It's a big day tomorrow."_

_Oliver's smile fell. There was no way she could know what he was planning for tomorrow. He had been so careful to hide any hints of his first big heist from her. "Thea," he started, but she cut him off._

"_It's okay to be nervous," she pushed past him and into the room, sitting herself down on the edge of his bed. "I know that this job interview is very important to you."_

_Oliver let out the breath he didn't know he had been holding. "Right. Job interview." In his excitement planning his next job, he had nearly forgotten that he had somehow managed an interview for a ground-level position at Star Inc. despite the fact that he had no college education._

"_But," Thea turned to him, worry in her eyes, "going in exhausted isn't going to help your first impression."_

_Chuckling, Oliver ruffled her hair like he always used to do when she was smaller. "Thanks, Speedy. What would I do without you to mother me?"_

_Thea just smiled, then stood up. "Promise me you'll go to sleep?"_

"_I promise." He even meant it - he had done enough tonight that he could go to sleep. Besides, landing that job would really help things financially. He couldn't afford to mess it up, just like Thea had said. "Night, Speedy."_

"_Night, Ollie."_

…

For the sixth time that night, Oliver questioned whether or not this was a good idea. And, for the sixth time, he decided that it probably wasn't but that he was going to do it anyway.

The doorknob rattled.

He tensed, realizing that it was too late to change his mind now. This was going to happen whether he liked it or not.

The door opened slowly, spilling light from the hallway of the apartment building into the dark room where Oliver stood, dressed in his vigilante gear.

"Close the door," he ordered, aware that his voice would probably surprise her since he was still out of her line of sight.

He heard a sharp intake of breath, and then she stepped into the apartment and closed the door behind her. "What are you doing here?" she demanded, moving towards him in the darkened room, the only light now coming from the moon through the open window.

He ignored her question. He had a mission to complete; that was it. There wasn't time for conversation or anything...anything that could distract him. "The Mortenson money. You took it." He watched her reaction carefully for any sign - a flinch, anything.

To her credit, her only reaction was to cross her arms and meet his gaze. "Why would you say that?" she asked cautiously.

"It wasn't hard to figure out," he growled. "You wanted to help the Glades, you have the skills and the access, and you seem have a ridiculous need to seek out danger…" Without realizing it, he found himself moving so that he was standing only inches from her. No matter how much self-control he tried to have, every time he saw her he felt this magnetic attraction pulling himself to her.

She bit her lip and looked down. "I gave it to charity. Anonymously."

Oliver breathed a sigh that was part frustration, part relief. At least she had gotten rid of the money. "Don't do it again," he warned her, turning to go without seeing how she took his advice.

"Wait." He felt a hand on his arm, stopping him from leaving. "Don't go," she pleaded. "Let me help you help the Glades."

"Remember what I said about dangerous situations?" he commented wryly, not turning around to face her. "I'm dangerous - you want to stay away from me, for your own sake." However, part of him wanted to accept her help. Not that he was currently helping the Glades - his nighttime activities were purely selfish. But maybe, with her, he could change...

"If you meant that, you wouldn't have come here to check on me," she answered quietly. "I'm not scared of you."

"Maybe you should be," he pulled away roughly, angry at how much he wanted to reassure her that he would never hurt her. With one final glance, he added, "And stay away from criminal activities - they have a way of pulling you in."

He jumped out the window without waiting for her response, but he wasn't fast enough to avoid hearing her say, "It's already too late."

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